Gate Keepers
by Jenihime
Summary: The Four were responsible for maintaining the balance, and their past failings might bring Evil closer to triumph than anyone thought possible... Will they be able to find the Water Queen in time to save all Realms?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello!**

**Welcome to my very first, 100% original fic, all characters are my own, all story plots are also my own. **

**Though not extremely original, I hope you guys will like…**

**I may update sporadically, but should do so once a week. English is not my 1****st**** language, and apologize in advance for any odd grammar/syntax. I would love to have a beta read my work **** please PM me if you are interested.**

**Please note that this story is rated Mature**

All was decided in ancient times, in a Period long gone, and none today remember, let alone tell fact from fiction, truth from lie, reality from myth. None but the Four.

In the time of the Ancient, petty and greedy Giants ruled and used humans as cattle. Elemental beings, remaining dormant since the genocide of the Titans, agreed on a truce. Being partial to humans, they decided to end the reign of destruction brought by the Giants to bring forth the Era of Men. Over eight thousand years ago, elementals formed a pack to combine their powers to battle a force older than their own…

Duality, Good and Evil, was battling at that time. Evil had the upper hand, and let its Giants continue their reign of terror. The Four chose to split such power, choosing neither good nor evil, neither light nor dark. Forming a new alliance, the Four would rule; each responsible for their own realm, no coalition being allowed, thus a balance would be maintained.

All had agreed, except for the for-mentioned, that a leader should be appointed. Only one showed the desired qualities of all four elements without showing the negative traits associated with such forces. A Woman would always be the Head of Council of the Four. She would always be the deciding voice should a consensus be needed. She could also, need be, control all other elements.

Only one could bring permanent cold amongst this realm… It was not the Earth King, as his feet were constantly deeply rooted in earth's warm soil, nor was is Wind, the Air Queen, which careless nature would bring from matter to another, breezing through to quickly to care, nor the Fire Emperor, whom was too busy in his consuming blaze… Only the Water Queen could permanently affect this, and many realms…

She was known for endurance, patience and tolerance… Until one faithful day, she was brutally attacked and forced into her next incarnation by the forces of evil, wanting to escape their prison. They had planned this coup for centuries, and 500 years before Moses would part the waters of the Mediterranean sea, the council was weakened to the point of breakage. The Fire Emperor was on a spiritual quest, hidden and afar amongst his own realm, the Air Queen was the first, and easiest to kill. Next was the Earth King, falling whilst protecting his beloved human wife. Having lost her allies, the Water Queen held the Evil for over 200 years alone, and was defeated, broken and defiled. Amongst the four, the longest had she lived, and for the first time since her brethren had forced her into guardianship of the council, had she been forced to live the cycle of rebirth. Her brother, the Fire Emperor returned, to find her on deaths doorstep. He vowed to find all of them once they were reborn, and forge anew the broken council. He was forced to flee, and live hidden amongst the shadows. He watched the rise of man and the return of the fight of duality. He watched centuries of hatred, of blood spilt upon 'holly lands' in the name of Good, of all the triumphs of Evil and of the slow decline of the followers of the Four.

Before the Water Queen died, she used the last of her strength to weave and seal an ancient spell in the fabric of her soul. Her enemy was powerful, and she needed to ensure their full strength before her return. Therefore, her first spell, through her age and wisdom, would be that whoever possessed her soul should meet its rebirth in water. Being a ruler of the Water Realm, sea creatures would come to her aid, and she could count on micro-organisms to change the human's body back to its elementary form. She also allowed her soul to seal and imprison all memories of past lives. Once she would come into full power, all the experience that she will have gained, all the knowledge and strength would return and aid her to regain full strength.

A gift and a curse, depending of the time it took for the council to reassemble.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello!**

**Welcome to my very first, 100% original fic, all characters are my own, all story plots are also my own. **

**Though not extremely original, I hope you guys will like…**

**I may update sporadically, but should do so once a week. English is not my 1****st**** language, and apologize in advance for any odd grammar/syntax. I would love to have a beta read my work **** please PM me if you are interested.**

**Please note that this story is rated Mature**

**I do not own the Montreal Fine Art Museum, McGill nor Big Brother-Big Sister Foundation (though a great cause ;) **

It all started on a cool spring morning. The island community of this North American metropolis buzzed with activity. After a long, bleak winter, the inhabitants seemed to be infected with an abundance of joy and love for life. It was hardly over 50F outside, and people were strolling in light coats and some, in t-shirts. Such is the reality of spring in Montreal. After 4 months of bleak weather, feet after feet of snow, the island and the suburbs sprouted back to life when Mother Nature gave them the first hints of fairer weather.

Lidia worked for the Montreal Fine Art Museum, placing her in the down town buzz, to which she was not immune. She always found spring to be special in Quebec. Experiencing the rebirth of life, year after year, seem to have a humbling effect on the young woman. She could feel the excitement produced by the first real nice day of spring, and decided to use her lunch break to go for a nice walk. As she walked down Sherbrooke Street, she passed the McGill campus, where she saw many students leisurely enjoying the warmth of the day. As she briskly made it pass the university, her cell phone buzzed to life. She took it out to see who was calling, having a strict no-answer policy on her lunch break, she was about to send it to her voice mail when she saw that her boss was calling her from her own cellphone. She promptly answered, wondering if she had forgotten something before leaving for her stroll outside.

"Yes Boss?" She answered. Though she knew her direct report, hardly a few years older than her, hated it when she called her by her nickname, she kept doing it. It was an endearment of some sorts, allowing the two to be friends despite the hierarchical nature of their work relationship. She expected the scolding and verbal sparring which normally occurred, but it did not come. Instead, Anna's worried voice came through: "Didi, you need to come back here, there is an emergency…"

Halting in her tracks, she turned around to head back, and asked: "What's wrong, did I forget something?" She was now power-walking back to the museum. "No, but you need to come back, when will you be here" Anna asked. After evaluating the distance, Lidia answered: "In about five, see you soon." Her mind was racing as to what kind of emergency was waiting for her. She worked in the evaluation department, and there were never any emergency to tend to. They mostly worked with art collectors and curators, lending their expertise in appraising valued pieces of art. The rest of the time, she worked with the restoration team, adding her talent to theirs. She was patient and meticulous by nature, and those particular traits served her immensely in her work.

After what seemed like an eternity, lungs burning and face flushed, she finally made it to the museum. He supervisor was in the lobby with two police officers. That is when Lidia's heart sank to her feet. 'Oh God, please let it be nothing serious…' Never was a plea so unheard in all of history of modern man. Anna looked at her friend with a mixed look of dread and sadness. Upon seeing her friend's face, a deep well of ice formed in the pit of her stomach. She felt her legs leaden and her mouth dried up. She was instantly shivering from heads to toes, and she was suddenly experiencing tunnel vision. The two police officers turned towards her, and came to greet her. Both were tall and rugged, all that you could expect from young officers. Lidia might have stopped to notice the strawberry blond hair and baby blues the younger one sported, or the sandy mane and sunset gold eyes of the older had she not been so nervous.

Lidia did not manage her stress well, which was why she had chosen the career path she had. She worked behind the scenes, not exposed to anything unexpected, living her little daily routine. She had serious anxiety when she needed to move out of her comfort zone, and spontaneity was not part of her vocabulary. As the two officers moved in closer, she was too busy concentrating on her own breathing to notice a third, suit clad gentlemen, walking towards them. Mr. Strawberry asked in a soft voice: "Miss, are you Lidia Petersen?" Lidia could only nod. She must have looked as bad as she felt, since the young man then said, with a strong French Canadian accent: "Perhaps we could go to your supervisor's office; there are some things that we need to discuss in private." Before her legs allowed her to move, she simply asked: "Is my family all right?" The older officer eyes shone in recognition, understanding her reaction. Not wanting to cause a commotion here in the lobby, said: "Yes they are, but it seems your little sister Akila seems to have gotten into a bit of trouble. Could we please move to somewhere more private please?"

Lidia exhaled, feeling her ability to move return. Akila was her little sister through the Big Brother – Big Sister program. Having been taken away from a violent household, the teen had been thrown from one foster home to another. The only constant the youth had had in the past 8 years had been Lidia. She somewhat hero-worshiped her, but her positive influence seem to end when the young girl was in school and in the presence of her troubled friends. Lidia led the 3 gentlemen to the elevator, which would take them to the appraisal department, where her bosses' offices were located. She knew that a few were vacant, and she would be able to plead the cause of her young ward, as she had done many times. While waiting, she said her usual opening statements when it came to bailing her out of trouble: "You know officers, I'm sure that you hear that all the time, but Akila is a very bright, good hearted young woman. She's had a tough start, but she is working really hard to graduate high-school and go to college, and eventually maybe even university." She smiled, but the three men seemed to be looking everywhere but at her.

She knew that she was none of the bombshells her friends were, but one of her friends once told her that she looked like a 'naughty librarian' and she used that whenever she needed to charm her way out of a situation. Being hardly 5'1", her petite build seemed to bring out the more protective side of the males of their species. Her Irish descends clearly spoke through her natural red hair and freckled cheeks. The only trait of hers which showed any bit of hardness was here iceberg grey eyes. They would occasionally change to warmer hews of blue, but would always maintain a certain coldness to them; that is, unless she was with close friends or Akila, then they would turn a warm ocean blue. When she had been in love for the very first time, her eyes had taken on an almost permanent shade of turquoise. Since that man had left her, her eyes had acquired a permafrost quality, always veiling her feelings.

When they arrived in the office space, Lidia was fidgeting with her purple cardigan as she let the officers in. That's when she truly noticed the third man. She had thought that he was much older than the others, but she now took a better look at him. He looked to be around 35, having dark hair and dark eyes, a permanent scowl marring his brow, as if time had etched all the woes and worries of his line of duty over his forehead, a permanent scar of all the minds' wounds… He was not unpleasant to the eye, but she was weary of him. Her instincts, which were seldom wrong, told her to flee. She waited until the three men were seated in the small office to close the door and take a seat herself. She steeled herself, emotion reflected in the coldness of her eyes and said: "So, what has Akila done now?" Since there seemed to be no beating around the bush with them, she opted for the unsubtle approach. Both uniformed men looked at each other, but it was the older man who spoke: "These are Officers Tremblay and Drouin. I am Detective Prevost. How well do you know Miss Akila?" The question shocked Lidia for a moment, and she answered: "I have been her Big sister for about eight years now. I normally see her twice a week, for about two to three hours each time. I guess I know her better than most people who took care of her in the past few years… she is a hard child to get to know, with all the changes and all…"

She didn't know what else to say, so she waited for the next question. The Detective then asked her: "When is the last time you saw her?" Nervousness once again took hold of her; she spoke with a shaking voice: "Sunday afternoon, we normally go shopping for groceries for the week to come, for her and her family in the Jean Talon Market. It's a great skill to acquire for the future, learning to purchase what is needed, balancing a budget…" The Detective's rough voice than said: "And you haven't had any contact with her since?" Lidia racked her brain and then said: "Well, I got a call from her Tuesday morning; it must have been around 3:00 Am. I thought she might have gotten into a little bit of trouble and needed a ride home to return to her foster home, so I tried calling her back with no answer. I called her foster parents, and they told me that she was out with some friends… I was a bit concerned, since it is a school night and all, but they seemed angrier that I woke them up than anything else…" She took a breath and then said: "I asked them to call me if there was anything, and I tried reaching Akila a few other times but I went straight to voicemail, so I guessed she needed some space or her cell was dead. I'm supposed to see her tonight, she has never missed one of our outings…" She paused and smiled. Admittedly, she knew that she had been a great, positive influence on the young girl, but it had also been one of the few constants in her life as well, and it filled her with great joy to have seen the pre-teen go from an angry child to a somewhat normal teen.

The detective then looked to Officer Drouin, the older of the two. The man seemed to have a gentle approach, and the woman seated at their table would need all the gentleness she could get. "Lidia, unfortunately, Akila will not be able to make it tonight." Lidia looked at the sandy haired officer and then said, her hackles rising: "Well, she's just a kid, she can't possibly be held overnight. Officers, Detective, I know that she can be quite rowdy and conjure up all kinds of mayhem, but that is a bit of an extreme…" Officer Drouin leaned over and placed is hand on hers, his eyes connecting with hers, pain evident in his voice: "No Lidia, Akila will not be joining you, because she has passed away. Her body washed up on the shore of the Oka Beach last night. I am truly sorry for your loss."

Lidia's brain simply shut down, and failed to register the information which was given. In that moment, she felt a part of herself die, but denial sunk its teeth in her hind as she said: "It can't be, you have the wrong girl, it has to be a mistake… She wouldn't drown herself, that wasn't her…" Words kept pouring out of her mouth, as her brain analyzed what had been said. She just could not phantom Akila taking her life. Younger, the teen had slashed herself a few times, as a plea for attention, and Lidia had ensured a rigorous psychological intervention. She was now in what seemed like good metal shape… The Detective cut her ramblings short, and said: "She did not commit suicide. There was evidence of extreme violence before she was thrown in the St-Lawrence. We are still determining the extent which was prior to death. We will need you to come with us to help us map out her last few days, based on her routine, friends, habits, usual hang-outs… that sort of thing."

Officer Drouin shot the Detective a sharp look of reprimand. Though his superior in rank, he was slightly older and more experience when handling such matters, and his natural instincts had always served him right in handling people. The woman in front of them did not need such callous treatment. He once again placed his hand on the young woman's, which seem to startle her. Tears started to roll down her cheeks, and she looked into the officer's golden eyes and said, broken: "Someone beat her, and then threw her in the river?" Drouin knew that shock was now firmly set in place. His best option was now to take the little woman away from this place, into an environment which was familiar to her. He also did not want to subject her to any inquisitive glances from her colleagues, and figured it would be best to usher her out the emergency exit. He then looked at his partner and said: "Go figure out how we can leave through the back exit." Nodding, Tremblay got up and out the office and returned a few minutes later. Drouin then helped the young woman up, but seeing how she was limp as a rag doll, he simply lifted her and carried her out.

Once outside, they all shivered. The turn in temperature surprised them, as it was now bitter cold. Such a turn was not unheard of, but was not common either. The wind now cruelly bit at their faces, and the hail falling stung their cheeks, ears and hands as they rushed to their car to get out of the odd weather. The three men were quite shocked by this sudden turn of weather, but drove on nonetheless. Impervious to all the weather drama, the 33yr old woman, still cradled in the officers' arm, was crying for the loss of the innocent she cared so deeply for.


End file.
